Protective Outer Garment For Wheelchair Occupant

ABSTRACT

An outer garment suitable for use by a wheelchair occupant that may be put on or taken off by an individual without requiring an undue amount of assistance. In one example, the garment takes the form of a “full-front, half-back” coat that fits as a single piece over an individual&#39;s head. The two sections are permanently joined along shoulder seams around the neck, outer arms and cuff regions, so that the garment is completely in place when put over an individual&#39;s head. A suitable type of releasable attachment (e.g., zipper, hook-and-loop, snaps, and the like) is used secure the sleeves in place and join the front and back sections along the side seams.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No. 63/077,202 filed Sep. 11, 2020, as well as U.S. Provisional Application No. 63/195,286 filed Jun. 1, 2021, wherein both provisional applications are incorporated herein in their entirety.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present invention relates to the design of outer garments and, more particularly, to outer garments particularly well-suited for an individual having limited mobility, such as requiring the use of a wheelchair.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

A significant portion of our population may find themselves needing to be transported by wheelchair, as a result of paralysis, injury, age, or the like. While some individuals are essentially wheelchair-bound, others may need this type of transport on a short-term basis (post-surgery, for example), or only for certain instances, such as a trip to a doctor's appointment, rehabilitation center, hospital out-patient services, and the like.

During inclement weather, or during seasons of colder temperatures, a wheelchair occupant may find it difficult—if not impossible—to put on a full-length coat and wear it without either having the coat “bunch up” and not provide the proper protection, or having some portion of the coat's material to be caught up in the mechanical structure of the wheelchair. The latter may indeed even result in having the wheelchair become unstable and perhaps having the individual falling out of the chair. The idea of “going without” proper outdoor clothing is not considered to be a solution to this problem.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The needs remaining in the art are addressed by the present invention, which relates to an outer garment to be worn by a wheelchair occupant and, more particularly, an outer garment that may be put on or taken off by an individual without requiring an undue amount of assistance.

In one embodiment, the garment takes the form of a “full-front, half-back” jacket (or coat) that fits as a single piece over an individual's head. The “half-back” section slides easily in place between the occupant and the back cushion of the chair, while the “full-front” section is long and wide enough to allow for the individual's legs to be encircled and protected. The two sections are permanently joined along shoulder seams around the neck, outer arms and cuff regions, so that the garment is completely in place when put over an individual's head. A suitable type of releasable attachment (e.g., zipper, hook-and-loop, snaps, and the like) is used secure the sleeves in place and join the front and back sections along the side seams.

In another embodiment, the garment takes the form of a “short” jacket (i.e., both the front and back sections terminating at about waist level), with the option of attaching a lap robe, blanket, or the like (via a releasable attachment mechanism) to the front of the jacket. In yet another embodiment, a “long-long” jacket having the same releasable attachment mechanism for joining the front to the back is contemplated.

It is an aspect of the present invention that the garment of the present invention may also find use as a protective cover when transporting individuals within a building (such as in a hospital, or dealing with infectious disease occurrences, or the like). More broadly, the inventive garment may be suitable for use in situations where any individual (regardless of mobility abilities) will be seated outdoors for an extended period of time (e.g., attending a football game, fishing, hunting, or the like). The configuration of having a half-back section in combination with a full-front section of an outer garment minimizes restriction of movement that is otherwise typical of wearing a long coat that requires the wearer to literally sit on a portion of the garment itself.

Other and further aspects and embodiments of the present invention will become apparent during the course of the following description and by reference to the accompanying drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Referring now to the drawings, where like numerals represent like parts in several views:

FIG. 1 depicts an individual sitting in a wheelchair and wearing an exemplary short/long embodiment of an outer garment formed in accordance with the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a rear view of an individual wearing the exemplary short/long garment as shown;

FIG. 3 is a detailed diagram of an exemplary short-back portion of the inventive garment;

FIG. 4 is a detailed diagram of an exemplary long-front portion of the inventive garment;

FIG. 5 depicts an individual sitting in a wheelchair and wearing an exemplary short/short embodiment of an outer garment formed in accordance with the present invention;

FIG. 6 is a rear view of an individual wearing the exemplary short/short garment as shown in FIG. 5;

FIG. 7 is a detailed diagram of an exemplary short-back portion of the inventive short-short garment of FIG. 5;

FIG. 8 is a detailed diagram of an exemplary short-front portion of the embodiment of the inventive garment as shown in FIG. 5; and

FIG. 9 illustrates a front view of the exemplary short-short garment as shown in FIG. 5, in this case also illustrating a lap blanket that may be releasably attached to the front portion of the short-short garment.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

FIG. 1 depicts an individual sitting in a wheelchair and wearing an exemplary short/long embodiment of an outer garment 10 formed in accordance with the present invention. As will be evident from the description of the drawings given below, the full-front/half-back garment 10 of this embodiment of the present invention may be put on an individual that is already seated in a wheelchair. Alternatively, outer garment 10 may be put on an individual that is standing (while allowing the mobility to have the individual position him/herself into place in front of a wheelchair), or even put on an individual while lying down (where the half-back is properly positioned once the individual has been raised into a seated position).

Outer garment 10 as shown in FIG. 1 includes a full-front section 12. Outer garment 10 also includes a half-back section 14 that is better illustrated in FIG. 2. Half-back section 14 is permanently attached to full-front section 12 along shoulder seams 27, enabling garment 10 to be put on by merely placing an individual's head through a neck opening 15 between the pair of shoulder seams 27. The embodiments of the present invention as described below illustrate a garment with long sleeves 24, terminating at cuffs 26 at a wrist location. Other versions of the inventive garment may be formed to have shorter sleeves; in situations where maximum protection from inclement weather (or cold weather) is desired, a long-sleeved version is considered preferable.

While attached together at shoulder seams 17, full-front section 12 and half-back section 14 remain separated along side seam locations 23 (as well as sleeve seams 25) when first put on. In accordance with the principles of the present invention, half-back section 14 is configured to releasably attach to full-front section 12 using a releasable attachment arrangement 30 (e.g., hook-and-loop fasteners, zippers, snaps, or the like), as discussed below in association with FIGS. 3 and 4.

As evident from the view of FIG. 2, the releasable attachment of half-back section 14 to full-front section 12 leaves the lower half of section 12L free from being constrained. Thus, when seated, an individual may position section 12L to best cover his/her lap and lower legs, giving the individual the opportunity to adjust its position to provide maximum comfort. In accordance with this embodiment of the present invention, a lower gathering arrangement 20 may be positioned along the bottom edge of full-front section 12 and used to encircle the lower legs (such as via releasable connectors 22) when desired.

Outer garment 10 may also include a hood 16 (which may be detachable) and a pocket 18 (which may be located at any convenient position on garment 10). In lieu of a pocket, a different type of covering (such as a muff) may be included to protect an individual's hands from the elements.

The back view of outer garment 10 as shown in FIG. 2 clearly illustrates lower gathering arrangement 20 as attached near the lower edge of full-front section 12. In accordance with the principles of the present invention, lower gathering arrangement 20 is used to allow the lower half of full-front section 12 to wrap around a seated individual's legs, with some suitable type of releasable locking clip 22 used to secure the lower portion of outer garment 10 in place and avoid the possibility of having the garment caught up in the wheels or other mechanisms of a wheelchair.

FIG. 3 is a view of half-back section 14 (as well as hood 16), where in this view a releasable attachment configuration 30 is shown as used to attach full-front section 12 to half-back section 14 along side seams 23 and sleeve seams 25. In a preferred embodiment, configuration 30 takes the form of a zipper that is attached to both half-back section 14 and full-front section 12 (see FIG. 4) and used to quickly and easily secure outer garment 10 in place. Preferably, a separate zipper is attached along each side seam location 23 joining full-front section 12 to half-back section 14 (shown as zippers 30-1 and 30-2 in FIGS. 3 and 4). Zipper terminations 32-1 and 32-2 are also shown in FIGS. 3 and 4 on sleeves 24 near the locations of cuffs 26. In use, therefore, the individual (or someone assisting the individual) pulls the zipper tab located at terminations 32, joining together full-front section 12 and half-back section 14, with the far-end of zippers 30 located at the bottom of half-back section 14.

As also shown in the view of full-front section 12 of FIG. 4, additional gathering mechanisms may be used with hood 16 and around a collar area 15 of garment 10 to provide additional protection to the wearer (especially in inclement or very cold weather).

It is to be understood that garment 10 of the present invention may also find use as a protective cover when transporting individuals within a building (such as in a hospital, or dealing with infectious disease occurrences, or the like). Again, the implementation of garment 10 as a half-back, full-front covering allows for a wheelchair occupant to be afforded similar protection as other fully-mobile individuals. More broadly, garment 10 as shown in FIGS. 1-4 may be suitable for use in situations where any individual (regardless of mobility abilities) will be seated outdoors for an extended period of time (e.g., attending a football game, fishing, hunting, or the like). The configuration of having a half-back section in combination with a full-front section of an outer garment minimizes restriction of movement that is otherwise typical of wearing a long coat that requires the wearer to literally sit on a portion of the garment itself.

Garment 10 itself may be formed of any suitable material, and may obviously be sized to accommodate child, youth, and adults of various body shapes. By virtue of using the combination of a half-back section and full-front section that are easily joined (such as by zippers), and gathered to surround the legs, the inventive garment allows for wheelchair occupants to be protected from the elements (when the garment is used outside) or from infections (when the garment is used indoors).

As mentioned above, an outer garment formed in accordance with the principles of the present invention may also comprise a “short-short” configuration, where both the back section of the garment and the front section of the garment are about waist-length in form, joining via releasable attachments (e.g., zippers, snaps, etc.) along the side seams in a similar manner as discussed above. Similarly, a “long-long” version of the releasably attached front-back outer garment is contemplated for use in situations where an individual may desire to have the additional length in the back, but still desire the ability to open the side seams in a re-attachable manner.

FIG. 5 depicts an individual sitting in a wheelchair and wearing an exemplary short-short embodiment of a one-piece jacket 50 formed in accordance with the principles of the present invention. As described in detail below, one-piece jacket 50 comprises a front section 52 and a back section 54, permanently joined across shoulder seams 53 that also form a central head opening 55. A pair of sleeves 58 are attached at shoulder seams 54, and terminate at cuffs 62. As evident from the view of FIG. 5, front section 52 comprises a continuous section of fabric (i.e., without a central opening). The particular embodiment of the present invention as shown in FIG. 5 also includes a hood 56 (which may be removable or attached) and a front pocket 59 (again, which may be removable or attached). Hood 56 and front pocket 59 are considered as optional elements of the short-short embodiment of the inventive jacket 50 as described in detail below.

FIG. 6 is a view of back section 54 (as well as hood 56) of short-short jacket 50 of FIG. 5, where in this view a releasable attachment configuration 60 is shown along the side seams 51 of jacket 50, as well as sleeve seams 57 along sleeves 58. Releasable attachment configuration 60 is particularly shown as extending from about sleeve cuffs 62 to a bottom edge 66 of jacket 50. In a preferred embodiment, releasable attachment configuration 60 takes the form of a zipper that is attached to both back section 54 and front section 52 (see FIG. 7) and used to quickly and easily secure one-piece short-short jacket 50 in place. Preferably, a separate zipper is attached along each side seam location 51 joining front section 52 to back section 54 (shown as zippers 60-1 and 60-2 in FIGS. 7 and 8). Zipper terminations 64-1 and 64-2 are also shown in FIGS. 7 and 8. In use, therefore, the individual (or someone assisting the individual) pulls the zipper tab located at terminations 64, joining together front section 52 and back section 54, with the far-end of zippers 60 located at bottom edge 66 of sections 52 and 54.

As also shown in the view of front section 52 of FIG. 7, additional gathering mechanisms may be used with hood 56 and around a collar area 57 of jacket 50 to provide additional protection to the wearer (especially in inclement or very cold weather).

Jacket 50, similar to outer garment 10, may be formed of any suitable material, and may obviously be sized to accommodate child, youth, and adults of various body shapes. By virtue of using the combination of a front and back sections that are easily joined (such as by zippers), the inventive garment allows for wheelchair occupants to be protected from the elements (when the garment is used outside) or from infections (when the garment is used indoors).

FIG. 9 illustrates an alternative embodiment of the short-short embodiment of the present invention as discussed above in association with FIGS. 5-8. As shown in FIG. 9, an additional covering 70 may be included and releasably coupled to front section 52 of jacket 50. Covering 70 may be thought of as a blanket, lap robe, or any other suitable type of garment that may be used to protect an exposed lap and leg area. In particular, covering 70 may be attached to front section 52 via a zipper 72, or any other type of convenience releasable attachment configuration (e.g., hook-and-loop attachments, snap attachments, etc.). Moreover, covering 70 may be formed to include a gathering attachment 74 with a securing clip 76 (such as gathering attachment 20 and clip 22 of outer garment 10) to gather covering 70 around the legs of the individual and prevent entanglement between covering 70 and the mechanism of an individual's wheelchair.

What has been described above includes examples of the claimed subject matter. It is, of course, not possible to describe every conceivable combination of components or methodologies for purposes of describing the claimed subject matter, but one of ordinary skill in the art may recognize that many further combinations and permutations of the claimed subject matter are possible. Accordingly, the claimed subject matter is intended to embrace all such alterations, modifications and variations that fall within the spirit and scope of the appended claims. Furthermore, to the extent that the term “includes” is used in either the detailed description or the claims, such term is intended to be inclusive in a manner similar to the term “comprising” as “comprising” is interpreted when employed as a transitional term in a claim. 

What is claimed is:
 1. A garment suitable for use by a wheelchair-bound individual, comprising: a front section having a head opening, a pair of shoulder seams, and a pair of side seams; and a back section permanently affixed to the front section across the pair of shoulder seams, the back section further including releasable attachment means for joining the back section to the front section along the pair of side seams.
 2. The garment as defined in claim 1, further comprising a pair of sleeves, each sleeve permanently affixed to the pair of should seams and terminating at a cuff at an opposing end, each sleeve further comprising open sleeve seams and releasable attachment means for closing the sleeve seams.
 3. The garment as defined in claim 2 wherein the pair of sleeve seams are adjacent to the pair of sleeve seams, allowing for a single releasable attachment means to join the front section, back section, and pair of sleeves together.
 4. The garment as defined in claim 1 wherein the front section is defined as a full-front section and extends to substantially cover an individual's torso and legs; and the back section is defined as a half-back section, extending downward from an individual's neck and terminating at substantially a waist location.
 5. The garment as defined in claim 4 wherein the full front section further comprises a lower gathering portion extending across a bottom termination thereof.
 6. The garment as defined in claim 5 wherein the lower gathering portion further comprises a releasable clip for supporting a lower region of the full front section in a manner that surrounds substantially all of the lower leg portions of a seated individual.
 7. The garment as defined in claim 1 wherein the front section is defined as a half front section and extends downward from the head opening to terminate at substantially a waist location; and the back section is defined as a half back section, extending downward from an individual's neck and terminating at substantially a waist location.
 8. The garment as defined in claim 7 wherein the garment further comprises a lap robe releasably attached to a lower edge of the half front section and used to cover at least a portion of an individual's lower legs.
 9. The garment as defined in claim 8 wherein the lap robe further comprises a lower gathering portion extending across a bottom termination thereof.
 10. The garment as defined in claim 9 wherein the lower gathering portion further comprises a releasable clip for supporting a lower region of the lap robe in a manner that surrounds substantially all of the lower leg portions of a seated individual.
 11. The garment as defined in claim 1 further comprising a hood portion.
 12. The garment as defined in claim 11 wherein the hood portion is releasably attached to the front and back sections.
 13. The garment as defined in claim 1 further comprising a pocket positioned on an exterior portion of the garment.
 14. The garment as defined in claim 1 further comprising a front pouch having opposing openings for allowing an individual to insert his/her hands within the pouch. 